1 Kings 20:1

1 Ben-ha'dad the king of Syria gathered all his army together; thirty-two kings were with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Sama'ria, and fought against it.

1 Kings 20:1 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 20:1

And Benhadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together,
&c.] This was Benhadad the second, the son of that Benhadad, to whom Asa sent to help him against Baasha, ( 1 Kings 15:18 )

and there were thirty and two kings with him;
these were heads of families, so called, and at most governors of cities under Benhadad; petty princes, such as were in the land of Canaan in Joshua's time:

and horses and chariots;
how many is not said:

and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it;
he went up with such an intent, but had not as yet done it in form; what moved him to it cannot be said precisely, whether an ambitious view of enlarging his dominions, or because the king of Israel paid not the tribute his father had imposed upon him, see ( 1 Kings 20:34 ) , however, so it was, through the providence of God, as a scourge to Ahab for his impiety.

1 Kings 20:1 In-Context

1 Ben-ha'dad the king of Syria gathered all his army together; thirty-two kings were with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Sama'ria, and fought against it.

2 And he sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, and said to him, "Thus says Ben-ha'dad:

3 'Your silver and your gold are mine; your fairest wives and children also are mine.'"

4 And the king of Israel answered, "As you say, my lord, O king, I am yours, and all that I have."

5 The messengers came again, and said, "Thus says Ben-ha'dad: 'I sent to you, saying, "Deliver to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children";